The woman

Kerra is an 83-year-old woman living in South Australia. The first thing you notice about her, stepping into her room is her tiny, skinny body. She’s no more than 1.55m (5.08 feet) tall. Her eyes are drawn as if there’s only a small line for each eye. Kerra’s hair is brown in color, slightly grey, and cut as short as a man would cut his hair at the barber.

Trish walks into Kerra’s room.

“Hello angel,” Kerra greets Trish with a smile as wide as the distance between the North and South poles. Trish helps Kerra sit straight on the bed and, she sits on the floor in front of Kerra. “How are you?” Trish asks Kerra. Kerra starts to cry and everything bubbles from the inside out.

She has three children, two daughters and one son. One of them is unemployed and two of them live in homes with their families. The two children who have families of their own, don’t want to know their mother and the unemployed child is struggling. Her whole body is full of pain and she can’t read her Bible anymore nor can she pray. It’s difficult to pray when she has so much pain.

Trish takes up the Bible and starts reading John 18. Kerra enjoys listening to the piece of scripture being read. This then rolls into prayer led by Trish for Kerra with thanksgiving.

The time passed so fast and it was time for Trish to leave. As Trish is driving home, she wonders what happens wrong in people’s lives, that things turn out so wrong. What happens to people who don’t want to look after their parents? What changed in their lives that they aren’t willing to look after their parents or their spouse’s parents? Or what happens to the parents when the children aren’t willing to look after them? All these questions run through Trish’s mind and she asks the Lord all these things as well.

The world is broken, people are broken. We all need someone to save us. We need someone to visit us, to pray with us, to spoil us with a cup of tea and cake at their bedside. We all need 30 minutes to just chat with someone. Our children are living in foreign countries, our parents need our help, we need our parents. Our children, their grandchildren need grandparents in their lives.

Life isn’t just about us or our families. It’s about our parents, brothers, sisters, extended family, friends, people in our congregations, colleagues. Are you reaching out?